A Sneak Peak at Chasing Shadows

Some of our readers may remember I'm a big fan of Swati Avasathi's debut novel, SPLIT.  So I am very excited to share that her second book, CHASING SHADOWS has been released!

In the near future, we're going to host an interview with Swati about CHASING SHADOWS, with a giveaway of a hardcover copy.  But here's the deets on the book to whet your whistle!  

CHASING SHADOWS is a searing look at the impact of one random act of violence.

Before: Corey, Holly, and Savitri are one unit—fast, strong, inseparable. Together they turn Chicago concrete and asphalt into a freerunner’s jungle gym, ricocheting off walls, scaling buildings, leaping from rooftop to rooftop.

But acting like a superhero doesn’t make you bulletproof...

After: Holly and Savitri are coming unglued. Holly says she's chasing Corey's killer, chasing revenge. Savitri fears Holly's just running wild—and leaving her behind. Friends should stand by each other in times of crissi. But can you hold on too tight? Too long?

In this intense novel, told in two voices, and incorporating comic-style art sections, Swati Avasthi creates a gripping portrait of two girls teetering on the edge of grief and insanity. Two girls who will find out just how many ways there are to lose a friend . . . and how many ways to be lost.

 

Wild Cards!

Last summer, I had a fun lunch at LA's Casa Vega with YA author and friend, Simone Elkeles.

Among the topics we covered was our works-in-progress, which for her was the first book in her new series, Wild Cards.

Well, that book released earlier this month. Check it out on Amazon (using the link above) or on her author fan page.  If you love it, come back and let us know!  

What's Fresh with Jenny Peterson's Creature Discomforts

Best friends Rachel and Kendra are well past ready for things to go back to normal … or as normal as it can get for a demon hunter and a half-mermaid. College is supposed to be about study sessions and sneaking beer, not fighting monsters, right? But when girls on campus start disappearing, Rachel, Kendra and cute fellow demon hunter/annoyance extraordinaire Sid begin investigating. The closer they get to the truth, the more they realize there’s something hiding in the Georgia mountains that is much older and deadlier than your everyday demon. Forget studying for finals, these three will need to fight just to survive.

The first in the digital novella Descendants trilogy following Rachel and Kendra's adventures in college, romance, and kicking monster butt. Peterson first started the storyline in PROM DATES TO DIE FOR and SOMETHING WICKED anthologies and readers begged for more. Look for EAT YOUR HEART OUT in Spring 2014.

Thanks for visiting us on YA Fresh, Jenny! Could you please tell us a little about your writing background and how you made your first publication?

Jenny: I’ve always been a writer—from the NEVER-ENDING STORY rip-off I wrote in fourth grade to the fairly elaborate stories I told my sister to freak her out. (Example: A man-eating sea bass named Murray lived in our lake.) My degree is in journalism, and I really enjoyed working at a paper as my creative outlet. But then! I had this idea for a novel hit me out of the blue one day in my mid-20s. Just bam! And I knew I had to write it. But writing fiction and telling people I was writing fiction are two very different beasts. I wrote that novel in absolute secrecy, and it was seriously years before I admitted to people I was trying to become an author. Obviously, I’m over that now. (That first novel went nowhere and was a bit of a mess, but we have to start somewhere, right?)

Readers often like to get a behind the scenes peek of an author's writing routine. It would be great if you could please share your typical writing day schedule.

Jenny: So I moved to Denver a couple years ago and decided to try the author/editor thing full time. I split my time between writing fiction and editing for Month9Books, a YA publisher. One thing about working freelance is being crazy organized. I have lists and calendars and precise time-management goals. But I kind of love being so organized. (Yay for Type As!) In a normal day, I juggle editing for half the day with fiction projects the other half: my novella trilogy for Buzz Books, a steampunk novel that’s in its third draft, and a reality-hopping sci-fi serial called THE INBETWEEN being released in installments through JukePop Serials. So I’m not just staring at a wall and holding elaborate conversations with my two cats, I often decamp to local coffee shops. This also has the added bonus of keeping me from reading gossip blogs (my weakness) all day.

Please tell us about CREATURE DISCOMFORTS and what we can expect from your characters.

Jenny: In CREATURE DISCOMFORTS, I continue the story I started in two shorts for Buzz Books. Best friends and college freshman Rachel and Kendra are well past ready for things to go back to normal … or as normal as it can get for a demon hunter and a half-mermaid. But when girls on campus start disappearing, Rachel, Kendra and fellow demon hunter/annoyance extraordinaire Sid begin investigating. The closer they get to the truth, the more they realize there’s something hiding in the Georgia mountains that is much older and deadlier than your everyday demon. Forget studying for finals, these three will need to fight just to survive.

So great! What's up next? Do you have another project in the works? If so, please tell us about it.

Jenny: The Descendants trilogy continues in EAT YOUR HEART OUT, slated to release in spring 2014. In it, Rachel, Kendra and Sid are facing a big bad that’s got some creepy talents and gross eating habits. You can read more about the next novella and the Descendants on the series website.

Jenny is a writer and editor based in Denver, CO. Reading and writing YA and new adult is her first love, and she spends an inordinate amount of time dreaming up fantastical worlds for kick-ass heroines. She also splits her time as an assistant editor for a YA publisher. The Descendants Series, her e-novella trilogy, is being released by indie publisher Buzz Books USA. When not writing or editing, she enjoys exploring the mountains and lakes of Colorado, shopping local, dominating at trivia and traveling. She lives in an old Victorian house with her husband and two lazy tabbies named after Harry Potter characters. Learn more about Jenny, her writing and travels at www.jennycoonpeterson.com. Or, you can follow her on Twitter @JenC_P, Facebook, Goodreads, or even Pinterest. Happy reading!

YA Novel Recommendations?

I've got some travel coming up, which always, always means reading time to me.  From long stretches in seat belts to spurts in hotel rooms to passing time in long lines, I'm geared to hang out with new characters and books.

I've got several ready in paperback and e-book form--except for this one, that I couldn't resist reading already:

OUT OF THE EASY is the story of a 17 year-old girl's struggle to leave the troubles of her 1950's New Orleans' French Quarter life behind her.  It was recommended to me by a fellow young adult author, and I certainly saw why.  Fast-paced with twists, turns and lots of action, it's a great read.


So now I thought I'd turn to our readers.  Any Young Adult book recommendations you can make for my travel reading, books you've read or are looking forward to reading?

Our Winners!

Thanks to all who entered to win a copy of my latest release, STUPID CUPID!

Our winners are C.R. Evers and Patricia!  So if you two would kindly contact me at admin@tinaferraro.com, I'll get those copies to you!

The Stupid Cupid Giveaway

Did you know I have a new publication out?  Short, sweet only 99 cents?

Called Stupid Cupid, it was released two weeks ago by the Boroughs Publishing Group as part of their Lunchbox Romance line.  Here's the official blurb:

Thanks to the mythical god of love, Cupid, 16-year-old Sydney's love life is about to get complicated…even though technically she doesn't have one.

And sticking with the short and sweet theme, this giveaway is short--between now and Thursday morning, October 10th at 8 am PST.  And it is sweet--in that all you have to do to be entered is leave the name of something sugary sweet you like in the comments.  

Two winners will be chosen at random.  Good luck to all!

PROM DATES and STORYGRAMS

Guess what? So you know about my recent novella SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS with teen monster hunters Jaz & Blake? Well, their debut short story, "Darkness Becomes Him" in the fun and spooky anthology PROM DATES TO DIE FOR is free for Kindle! So get it while you can, the promo will run through the weekend!

The anthology includes these great stories:

A Night They'll Never Forget. Five young adult authors cordially invite readers to five proms with a paranormal twist: In Kelly Parra's "Darkness Becomes Him," teen supernatural hunters are hired to save a prom date hungry for souls. Heather Dearly introduces us to a young reaper haunted by a past she doesn't remember in "The Bone Flower." A prom queen seeks justice and revenge in Lena Brown's, "Every Breath You Take." Aaron Smith gives us a loner musician called to save his classmates from an enemy only he can see in "A Kiss at the Threshold." -Jenny Peterson's heroine gets much more than she wished for on her prom night and 18th birthday in "Tonight, You're Mine." Frightful, fun and unforgettable.

I thought I would end the week with some of the fun promo we created for SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS...

Meet Jaz & Blake, well, their storygrams...

I really enjoyed making these, just a small visual on their characters. You can find storygrams for Oz and Marco on my Facebook page.

Buzz Books put together this fun trailer in Jaz's POV as she hunts for a ghoul in a cemetery! Thanks for letting me share! Have a great weekend!

Join me for the Launch of SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS!

Hi YA Freshers!

I'd like to invite you to two special occasions...

"Just the right combination of butt-kicking and romance to keep you on the edge of your seat." —Allison van Diepen, The Vampire Stalker

Supernatural teen hunters and kick-butt couple Jaz and Blake get trouble in their own backyard, the graveyard, when a ghoul is on the loose and looking for fresh meat. When a teen hunter on the verge of death arrives at their doorstep, they realize a much greater evil is upon them.

Jaz is satisfied with their makeshift foster family and fighting monsters, but Blake yearns for adventure and the truth about his biological family. Will Blake leave Jaz to search for something more...and to fend for herself? Can a relationship survive when death is lurking just beyond the gravestones?

SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS is the first novella to follow Jaz and Blake's whirlwind, action-packed romance started in PROM DATES TO DIE FOR and SOMETHING WICKED. With an eye for great dialogue and fight scenes, SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS is a fast-paced, fun read.

1) Today is the official release of my novella SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS!

I just want to share my excitement with you! For the past couple of years, I have been writing short fiction. It gave me a break from writing a full-length novel and it was fun! When I decided to create Jaz and Blake (my monster-fighting teen duo) I didn't worry about pressures or plot lines, just wrote for the joy of it. Jaz and Blake were born in their first short story together titled "Darkness Becomes Him" in the PROM DATES TO DIE FOR anthology. But Jaz and Blake were not ready to be laid to rest in their world of fighting monsters, they wanted to keep sharing their adventures with you. They wanted to fight merpeople in the story, "Mermania" in the SOMETHING WICKED anthology. I thought that might be it for them but alas, they wouldn't stop whispering in my ear. They wanted a longer story. They wanted a novella to battle ghouls and a wicked necromancer. Just to assure you, each story is a standalone. You can read the first chapter on Amazon and a cool extra scene on my website. I would love for you to download a copy from Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

2) Not only is SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS officially releasing today, but Buzz Books is throwing a fantastic on-line launch party on Facebook and all of you are invited! Just click join and you'll be entered into winning some fun prizes...

SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS is the first full-length novella to follow Jaz and Blake's whirlwind, butt-kicking romance started in PROM DATES TO DIE FOR and SOMETHING WICKED. (The story still stands alone for new readers.) JOIN the launch party for giveaways all day long including copies of PD2D4, SW and Jenny Peterson's upcoming YA fantasy, CREATURE DISCOMFORTS as well as Diana Rodriguez Wallach's NARA GAZING Mythology High story.

BUY SUPERNATURAL HUNTERS ON 10/1 for a chance to win a Kindle on Halloween! ($79 value). Email receipt to buzzbooksusa (at) me (dot) com.

Thank you for letting me share with you! I hope to chat with you on-line at the launch party. Come join to win, win, win!